Bandura - 1961

Question 1

What is the background to Bandura?

Answer 1

Social learning theory & operant conditioning

Question 2

What is Bandura’s aim?

Answer 2

to demonstrate that learning can occur through mere observation of a model and that imitation of learned behaviour can occur in the absence of that model

Question 3

What are the hypotheses?

Answer 3

1- children shown aggressive role models will show significantly more aggressive acts
2- children shown non-aggressive role models will show significantly less aggressive behaviour
3- boys will show significantly more imitative aggression than girls
4- children will imitate same sex models to a greater degree

Question 4

What is the sample?

Answer 4

• 72 children
• 36 boys & 36 girls
• 3-5 years old
• from a nursery school in Stanford California

Question 5

What are the strengths of the sample?

Answer 5

• not small = more representative and generalisable
• no gender bias - equal number of boys and girls

Question 6

What are the weaknesses of the sample?

Answer 6

• culture bias = ethnocentric - lack pop validity

Question 7

What sampling technique was used?

Answer 7

opportunity

Question 8

Why is this an opportunity sample?

Answer 8

the children were already available in the nursery

Question 9

What are the strengths of an opportunity sample?

Answer 9

• easy to obtain
• no researcher bias

Question 10

What are the weaknesses of an opportunity sample?

Answer 10

• culture bias - same type of people in one place

Question 11

What is the method?

Answer 11

laboratory experiment

Question 12

What makes this study a lab experiment?

Answer 12

• 3 IVs
• controlled setting set up for the purpose of the study
• specific toys

Question 13

What are the strengths of a lab experiment?

Answer 13

• high control over extraneous variables = easier to establish causality
• standardisation = internal validity

Question 14

How were EVs controlled?

Answer 14

standardised procedure - having the same toys available for the children

Question 15

What are the weaknesses of a lab experiment?

Answer 15

• lacks ecological validity
• unusual situation = demand characteristics more likely

Question 16

What were the IVs?

Answer 16

1- aggressive, non-aggressive, or control model
2- sex of model (female or male)
3- sex of child (boy or girl)

Question 17

What was the DV?

Answer 17

amount of imitative behaviour

Question 18

How were the children observed?

Answer 18

through a one way mirror

Question 19

What were the classifications of imitative aggressive responses?

Answer 19

physical and verbal

Question 20

What is the design?

Answer 20

matched pairs

Question 21

How were the participants matched?

Answer 21

by pre-testing the children on four 5 point rating scaled

Question 22

What were the 4 pre-test rating scales based on?

Answer 22

1- physical aggression
2- verbal aggression
3- aggression towards inanimate objects
4- aggressive inhibition

Question 23

How were scores on the pre-test obtained?

Answer 23

adding the result of the of the four ratings